Scaling and fractality in subcritical fatigue crack growth: Crack‐size effects on Paris' law and fatigue threshold
Alberto Carpinteri, Francesco Montagnoli
Abstract
Abstract The present contribution investigates the crack‐size effects on Paris' law in accordance with dimensional analysis and intermediate asymptotics theory, which makes it possible to obtain a generalised equation able to provide an interpretation to the various empirical power‐laws available in the Literature. Subsequently, within the framework of fractal geometry, scaling laws are determined for the coordinates of the limit‐points of Paris' curve so that a theoretical explanation is provided to the so‐called short cracks problem. Eventually, the proposed models are compared with experimental data available in the literature which seem to confirm the advantage of applying a fractal model to the fatigue problem.